Creating Change
by Lily Hanson
Summary: Hayley and Calvin are both running for class President. They promise each other to keep things clean, but clean races and politics just don't mix.
1. Ranger Parents

_Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers Ninja Steel._

Jenny liked the normalcy.

Since the Rangers had defeated Galvanax, life was back to normal. Jenny no longer needed to worry about a monster turning up in the city and threatening the planet. She no longer had to watch her daughter rush towards evil to face it head on. Now, she could enjoy just being a mom.

Or, she could enjoy figuring out how to be a mom. So far, Jenny had learned how to be the mother of a Power Ranger, and even there, she was still just learning. Now that everything was back to normal, Jenny had to learn to be the mother of a regular teenage girl.

Or, as close to regular as Sarah came. Jenny still couldn't believe her daughter.

When she first met Bill, he told her about Sarah and his eyes lit up. Jenny loved how much he cared for his daughter and while she had no children of her own, and no intention of having her own children, she wasn't opposed to the idea of becoming a step-mother. She had assumed Bill would always be the primary parent, and she would only have to step up if he was late at work, or gone for the weekend. And given he spoke so highly of Sarah, and how sweet, and kind and smart she was, Jenny thought maybe being a step-parent wouldn't be so bad.

And then she met Sarah, and she was everything Bill had described, and then some. Sweet, kind, smart, brave, determined, hopeful and sometimes a bit of a trouble maker. She was inventive and resourceful and always thinking on her feet. She was athletic and thoughtful. Passionate and gentle.

She was a lot, and though it was a lot of good, it was still a lot to juggle. There was always some kind of experiment or inventing taking place in the garage, and always a science fair or sports game or after school activity to attend or pay for, or both! There were always conferences with teachers about Sarah's abilities and there was never enough that Bill, Jenny, or her school could offer to keep her challenged, especially in math and science. Excelling was an understatement, where Sarah was concerned.

So, Bill's job transferring to Summer Cove was likely the best thing to happen – at least, he and Jenny thought so at the time. Summer Cove was a great city, and its local High School had a reputation for being one of the best in the State. It had many after school programs and a lot of funding from the parents of the students who attended. Sarah would want for nothing and having attended the school would look incredible on her college resume.

However, there was an issue when they enrolled Sarah. Principal Hastings wouldn't accept her into the tenth grade. She flat out refused, and said the tenth grade at Summer Cove High would not be a good fit for Sarah. Jenny watched the panic build up on her husband's face when he heard this. Sarah being rejected from anything never happened, and he couldn't imagine why a school like Summer Cove wouldn't want a student like Sarah. She was smart, she was athletic, she was outgoing. There wasn't a part of the school that she couldn't help.

Of course, Bill was biased. He was her father, after all. Jenny remembered thinking that before she met Sarah. She remembered when Bill would tell her how smart Sarah was, that she would think _"well, you have to think that. She's your kid"._

But then she met Sarah, and talked with Sarah, and bonded with Sarah. Now, in the principal's office, she was the one talking about how smart Sarah was, and how much of an asset she would be to the school.

" _I understand that, Mr and Mrs. Thompson. That's precisely why we aren't enrolling Sarah in the tenth grade. Instead, with your permission, of course, we'll be enrolling her in the eleventh. Given her marks from her previous school and her passion for higher learning, we think the eleventh grade will present her with a bit more of a challenge."_

And it had been a bit more of challenge, but only a bit. Sarah continued to excel in math and science, and was only showing some difficulty in the rest of her classes, but still no less than the rest of her classmates. Even after her brain injury left her unable to read or write, Sarah was still only having a little bit of a hard time with material that other students found extremely difficult.

Jenny wanted more for Sarah. She wanted Sarah to get the experiences she craved for, and the challenges that would truly help her grow.

Unfortunately, she didn't know where to start looking. Where could she find exactly what a sixteen-year-old, now twelfth-grade, aspiring engineer and former Ranger needed?

"Can she take early college courses?" Dane asked from across the kitchen table. Since he had returned from inside the Prism, he and Jenny had been spending more time together. In ten years, he had lost almost everything. His wife had passed when Brody and Levi were young, many years before the Prism ever appeared to the Romeros, and his friends had all since moved away and left town. He had nothing to go home to except for his boys, who now had passions and goals of their own. Levi hadn't yet gone back on tour, but he was ready, and he was planning on how he would have his big comeback into the music industry, while at the same time balancing being with his family he missed so dearly.

Brody was enrolled in school and loved hanging out with his friends and being a normal teenager, finally. He spent his day at school learning, and the hung out with his friends until late. He would always be home to have dinner with his father, but in the time before that, Dane was left to himself. The only person he felt he could turn to was Jenny. She knew about the Rangers, he didn't need to explain anything to her.

And, she was a Ranger parent. When he spoke of how helpless he felt, knowing his sons were in danger and there being nothing he could do about it, Jenny empathized.

"I can't afford it," Jenny said. "Bill's already dedicated his entire life savings to putting her through school, and that's barely going to cut it. We don't want to hold her back. We want her to have every opportunity."

"She'll get scholarships."

"We can't rely on that, though," Jenny said, then shook her head. "It's just… You know, it's not that big of a problem. She's alive, she's no longer in danger. I should just be grateful that I know she's coming home every night. How is life with the boys?"

"It feels wonderful," Dane smiled. He had been trapped in the Prism for ten years, but it felt more like a long nap than a prison. Time had flown by because he hadn't been aware of his own existence until he was saved. However, he knew he had missed a lot, and it hurt. "But they're so big now!"

"They grow up fast," Jenny chuckled. "I feel like I just met Sarah yesterday and now she's a retired Ranger. Does Levi have dates for his tours?"

"Not yet. He's working on a new album first. Apparently, being a Ranger gives you a lot to write about."

"I'll bet it does. Any release dates?"

"Not even close," Dane chuckled as he shook his head. "But he said we'd all be the first to hear his single, once he's finished."

"And how's Brody?"

Dane smiled brightly at the mention of his youngest son. He couldn't believe what Brody had been through in his absence. While his heart went out to boys his boys for having to grow up without him, Levi had at least found a family to take him in, and his life had some sense of normal, at least until his fame. Brody had spent the last ten years as a prisoner for Galvanax – possibly a fate worst than death. However, he was still upbeat, still smiling, and still very optimistic.

"Brody is still my little ninja."

"They grow so fast," Jenny nodded, "But they never completely grow up, do they?"

"They don't," Dane said. "You know, now that I think of it, I was considering heading back to my old Academy, where I trained, and seeing if they would be willing to take on Brody so he could become a ninja like me. You know, beyond the Ranger stuff. If Sarah's looking for a challenge, maybe she might want to join."

"The Wind Ninja Academy?" Jenny asked and Dane looked to her curiously.

"You're heard about it?"

"My brother is a sensei there," she said. "Shane Clarke? Air Ninja."

"No way!" Dane cried out with a laugh. "Shane is your brother? He's a legend at the Academy. Ninja Storm Red. Saved the whole planet from Lothor and his army of monster Ninjas."

"Knew about the Ranger thing," Jenny said as she started to fan herself with her hand. For some reason, the temperature in the room had started to soar. "Didn't know he became a legend. He left that part out."

"Shane is your brother," Dane smiled. "Wow, what a small world."

"He was here for a while," Jenny said. "After Bill died, he came to help out with Sarah and to get me back on my feet again."

"He's a good guy."

"He is," Jenny said, then started to tug at her shirt, "I'm sorry, but is it hot in here?"

"I'm okay," Dane said. "Want me to open a window?"

"Please," Jenny nodded. Dane got up from his chair, and as he started to pull a window open, he heard Jenny start to groan. When he turned around, he could see her massaging her neck and opening her mouth to stretch out her jaw.

"Are you okay?" he asked her.

"I'm just… a little uncomfortable."

"Want me to open another window?" Dane asked. Jenny shook her head and then had a pained look on her face as she started to rub her chest. Dane approached her slowly.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Can you grab me an aspirin?" Jenny asked and Dane nodded. He rushed to where she was pointing, fond the bottle and then reached for a glass. Jenny shook her head. "Just bring it over and then grab my keys."

"What?" Dane asked, but did as she said. He brought her the aspirin and she chewed it as he grabbed her keys.

"Do you have a driver's licence?"

"Haven't gone around to getting it," Dane said. His licence had long expired and truth be told, he didn't need one. He would eventually get it, for convenience, but his priority right now had been bonding with his sons. "I remember how to drive."

"Good. Remember where the hospital is?"

"Yes."

"Take me there," Jenny said.

"Are you okay?" Dane asked her and she shook her head.

"I think I'm having a heart attack."

He grabbed her arm gently and walked out to the car with her.


	2. The Waiting

Sarah didn't hear the class phone ring in English because she had her headphones on. As a result of not being able to read, she couldn't do silent reading like the rest of the class. While they were all glancing at their novels, reading the words and flipping the pages, Sarah was listening to her book through the device that Kelly, Brody and Preston had created for her at the beginning of the year. It worked just as well as reading.

So when she felt Mrs. Finch tap her on the shoulder, she jumped. She removed her headphones and looked up.

"Principal Hastings called for you," she said and the whole class looked up from their books.

"Ooh," they teased her, but she ignored them. She knew she was due a little extra help in school so she could complete all her assignments and thought this would just be an update on what to expect for the rest of the year. She grabbed her bag and made her way down to the office. She frowned when she saw her uncle Shane standing there with Principal Hastings. As she reached up to hug him, she felt something bubble in her stomach. This couldn't be good. He was supposed to be in Blue Bay.

"I've signed you out," he said. "Do you have your stuff?"

"What's going on?" Sarah asked. "Why are you here?"

"I'll tell you in the car, alright," he put his arm around her shoulder and escorted her out of the school. Once they were in the parking lot, Sarah noticed that Shane hadn't driven his car to school. Instead, they climbed into a new car and once Sarah was inside, she saw her uncle Porter had come along as well.

"You remember Porter, right?" Shane asked and Sarah nodded.

"Where are we going?" Sarah said. "What are you two doing in town? Where's mom?"

The brothers looked to each other, then back at Sarah.

"Jenny's in the hospital," Shane said. "She was at home when she had a heart attack."

"What?" Sarah cried out and practically jumped through the roof of the car. Shane reached back and put his hand on her leg.

"Look, it's fine. She made it to the hospital in time. A friend, Dane, was able to drive her."

"Brody's dad?"

"They're still running a few tests, but the worst is behind us," Porter says. "When they let visitors in, she'll want to know we've all got her back."

"Why did she have a heart attack? How… I mean, but she's…"

"These things just happen sometimes, Sarah," Shane explained. "There's no rhyme or reason to it. But Jenny's tough. She'll bounce back."

"Buckle up," Porter said. "We'll be there in no time."

-Ninja-Steel-

Dane paced back and forth in the hospital, just waiting for news. He hadn't known Jenny long, but he felt invested. She was one of his son's best friends mother's and in the short time he had been back, he felt a connection with her. They were the only two Ranger parents for the current team who knew they were Ranger parents.

And he didn't want to come back into this world only to lose something else. Be it a friend, family, or a family's friend.

"Dane?" he turned when he heard his name and saw two men walking in, with Sarah rushing past them. She grabbed onto his arms as she looked up at him, desperate for information.

"Where is she?"

"They're still confirming the heart attack. They want to rule out everything else," he said. "You'll be able to see her soon."

"But what happened?" Sarah asked and Dane shook his head. He glanced up to Shane and Porter as he answered.

"I barely knew. She's the one who told me to take her to the hospital."

"You did the right thing," Shane said and pat Dane on the shoulder. "So there are no updates?"

"None yet," Dane said. He looked to Sarah, who had taken over pacing the floor, trying to contemplate how this could be happening and Dane felt his heart going out to her. Jenny had quickly told him how her husband, Sarah's father, had recently passed and how tough it had been for both. Dane remembered how distraught both his boys had been when their mother passed, and they had been barely old enough to completely understand what that meant.

Porter went to find a worker to see if he couldn't find out more. When he did, Dane looked to Shane.

"Look, I get now isn't the time but… You are Sensei Clarke, right?"

"You know about me?"

"Yeah, yeah," Sarah muttered and quickly glanced to the two men. "Shane is a sensei at the Wind Ninja Academy where Dane trained. Nice to meet you both, we're all Rangers, don't say too much in front of Porter. Is mom going to be okay?"

"Sarah, you just need to be patient," Shane said with a bit of laugh as Sarah's pace turned into a skip. Her nervous energy was building up and while he could understand her desperation for answers, she couldn't rush things. He then turned back to Dane, "So you're a Wind Ninja, huh?"

"I trained at the academy until Aiden was born. Levi, rather," Dane corrected himself. "Sorry, that takes some getting used to, you know?"

"It must," Shane nodded. "You know, I do think I remember you. You were at the top of your class, right?"

"One of the best," Dane answered. "You know, I always kind of thought, if I still attended the Academy, I would have been the red Ninja Ranger."

"Uh, no, dude, see, I had the scroll of destiny that picked me long before anything happened," Shane said. "You may have been the best in your class, but I was Ranger good."

"You think?" Dane chuckled. "How about a spar when we get out of here. See who really should have been the red Wind Ninja Ranger."

"You are so on," Shane smirked.

Sarah sat in a chair and rolled her eyes, "You have to be kidding me. Mom's having a heart attack, maybe dying, and all you two can think to do is puff your chests and fight?"

"She's not going to die, Sarah," Shane shook his head.

"You don't know that," Sarah frowned. "No one knows what's going on because all anyone knows right now is that we'll know something soon!"

As Shane was about to try and console his niece, a doctor finally stepped out.

"Mrs. Thompson is ready for visitors."


	3. Long Night

While she needed to stay in the hospital, Jenny was well. There wasn't a lot of damage to her heart, which kept the doctors and her brothers optimistic about her recovery. Still, to be safe, they were keeping her in the hospital for monitoring.

Porter opted to stay with his sister while Shane drove Sarah home. As much as they all wanted to stay with Jenny, she was tired and needed rest and Shane didn't think it would be a good idea for them to all spend the night at the hospital. Porter was reliable, and he would know what to do if something happened.

"Is there anyone you want to invite over?" Shane asked his niece as they stepped out of the car. It was late, but he knew if Sarah called, her friends would answer. It was part of the bond they shared as Rangers. No matter what, and no matter when, they had each other's backs. It was unspoken, and it was probably the best feeling in the world.

So, if Sarah wanted to have friends over, Shane would let her. They would be therapy. But Sarah shook her head and went straight to the garage. The former red Ranger decided to leave her for a bit while he prepared something for dinner. They had eaten at the hospital, but they had all be worried and the food wasn't great, so they hadn't had a full dinner.

When it was ready, he brought it out to the garage. He expected to find her designing or building or tinkering. He thought maybe she would be working on a robotic heart. He had heard of a Ranger who received one and knew it was possible. If anyone could make another it would be Sarah. Instead, he saw her with her head in her hands on her work table. He set her plate down next to her and put his arm around her.

"She's fine," he reminded Sarah, but she shook her head. She couldn't speak. She didn't know what to say and even if she did, she couldn't open her mouth without releasing a sob. Shane hugged her a little closer. "It's scary, but we're past the hard part now. She'll be home in a few days, nagging you about something or other."

He grabbed a box from her table and held it up, "Is this your latest…" before he could finish his sentence, Sarah had snatched the box from him and tossed it into the garage door. Shane nodded his head, "Okay, we're in the anger stage, I see. Are you sure you don't want to talk it out?"

Sarah crossed her arms. Shane sighed.

"Look, lots of people have heart attacks. They just happen. But every day, science gets better. You know that."

Sarah glared at him. Shane nodded.

"They come up with new medicine that helps, and new therapies and treatments and… I mean, what we have is already pretty good, so Jenny is going to be just fine. And she'll get better every day, and stronger and we'll have to worry less and less and… oh."

It had come to him while he was speaking. They were going to have to worry. Sarah would have to worry. It didn't matter how much Jenny recovered or how far science could take her. She will have always had a heart attack. She would always be vulnerable.

Sarah had already lost one parent this year. Jenny needed to be immortal. Today had proven that at any moment, Sarah could be left on her own.

Shane hadn't known her all that long. Though she had been his niece for years, until recently he only saw her at family events and over the holidays. However, as he had gotten to know her better, he knew she was tough, brave and resilient. A problem occurred, she found a solution. A challenge arose, she found a way to overcome it. Her brain was not wired to give up.

However, she was still human – still just sixteen – still a child. She needed a parent. The thought of losing his own parents devastated Shane, and they were still healthy and strong, and he was a grown man.

Sarah was a Ranger – a hero for the planet. She had faced down monsters twice her size and strength, but she was still just a child. She needed her mother.

"You're not alone here, kid," Shane told her as he hugged her tight. "You know your mother's going to be fine. And I'm here for you. Until Jenny's on her feet and long after. As ninjas, I've got your back. As a Ranger, I've got your back. As your uncle, I've got your back. Promise."

Sarah nodded her head and nestled into her uncle's arms. Shane smiled as he kissed the top of her head.

"You're not alone," he assured her.

-Ninja-Steel-

It was the middle of the night when Kelly woke up, drenched in her own sweat. Though she knew she had nothing to fear, her nightmares were still strong, still very real. They all involved Drex in some way. Sometimes, she relived her attack. Sometimes, he toyed with her, threatening her. Sometimes, she watched as he tortured a friend. The common theme: helpless. She was helpless to do anything except what he wanted. In the end, he always got what he wanted, no matter how hard she fought and no matter how hard she wished for it not to happen.

When she woke, she knew to take a deep breath. She knew to tell herself that this was just a nightmare. It wasn't real and Drex couldn't hurt her again.

Still, she reached for her Power Star, just in case, and she was glad she still had it.

In the days following Galvanax's destruction, the Rangers had discovered their Power Stars had vanished. Here one minute, gone the next. They were no longer needed. All six original Stars, plus the two that Mick and Dane had used to become Rangers were no more.

Kelly held onto hers. For a while, her nightmares would involve her losing her Power Star and being unable to hold off Drex. Fortunately, her star was not connected to the Nexus Prism, which had also disappeared. Madam Oedius had created her star as an armour for Drex the first time he fought the Rangers. Sarah and Preston had picked it up when they knocked it off him and Sarah brought it home. She made a few modifications to it, allowing Kelly, or anyone who needed to use it, the ability to become a Ninja Steel Green Ranger.

So Kelly kept it close to her, though she knew she wouldn't need it. She liked to know that, just in case, she had that power. She was completely vulnerable.

As she sat up, Kody snuck into the bedroom. He often liked to sleep with either Hayley or her parents during the night, but sometimes he would wander. He came into the bedroom, saw Kelly sitting up in her bed and knew she had just had a nightmare. He always came when Kelly had a nightmare. She invited him up on her bed and put her arms around him, pulling him in close.

Kody didn't move from her side the rest of the night, and Kelly never let go of her Power Star. It was maybe an hour before she was calm enough, but she did eventually fall asleep, knowing Kody would keep his eye on her and knowing that she had the power to protect herself, should it ever be needed.


	4. The Body Count

It was only yesterday Sarah had received news of her mother's heart attack. After visiting the hospital, Shane had driven her home. He told Sarah she could take the day off school, but Sarah couldn't imagine anything worse. At least, at school, she would be distracted. Her mother still needed rest and therefore wasn't allow visitors for long. This way, the bulk of Sarah's day was busy, and when she got home, she would still be able to visit Jenny.

"A heart attack?" Preston asked in the cafeteria as he ate with his friends. Sarah nodded her head.

"It happened yesterday."

"That's why you left school," Calvin reasoned why Kelly put her arm around her girlfriend.

"Will she be okay?"

Sarah sighed, "She's fine now. They're just keeping her. It's protocol for her to stay at the hospital for a few days so they can observe her, but they think the worst is behind her."

"That's good," Hayley smiled. "Is there anything we can do?"

"No, I think it's all figured out," Sarah said. "My uncle Porter's in town. He's helping with all the hospital stuff while mom is there. Shane's back too. He's staying with me. And Dane was a big help yesterday too," Sarah looked to Brody with a smile as she said this. "He drove her to the hospital. Right on time."

"He mentioned that last night," Brody nodded. He had assumed something happened when his father didn't show up for dinner on time. Since he had been back, Dane didn't want to miss a single moment with his sons and dinner was a time they were guaranteed to get together. He hadn't said much about what kept him when he did get home. Just that there had been an emergency he needed to take care of. "So Jenny will be fine?"

"I think so. I mean… I hope so," Sarah said. "I guess it's only fair. After all the times I've freaked her out, she finally gets her revenge."

"Can we visit her?" Calvin asked. "You know, to see how she's doing?"

"The hospital only lets family visit," Sarah said. "But she'll be home this weekend. If you guys wanted to stop by, she might like that."

"Sounds like a plan," Calvin smirked. "I'll bring the pizza."

Hayley pinched his arm as he said it and he winced and turned to her. "OW! What?"

"She _just_ had a heart attack," Hayley reminded Calvin. "I don't think shoving pizza in her face is appropriate."

"Oh… right," Calvin muttered. "Sorry."

"I'll get the list of recommended foods from Porter and I'll tell you what you can bring," Sarah said. "Although, there is one food that I…"

"I'm bringing ice-cream," Calvin assured her with a little laugh, and Sarah smiled brightly.

"Yes!"

-Ninja-Steel-

"God, you're big," Serena said as Tiger jumped up, resting her paws on the white Ranger's shoulders to greet her. Serena rubbed the cat behind the ears, then pushed her down. "What are you, two-hundred pounds?"

"A muscular two-thirty, thank you," Gia smirked as she stepped over some debris from the crash site to greet the former Ranger. "What are you doing here?"

"Moving," Serena said. "Got offered a contract position in Summer Cove at the school. Bit different from Amber Beach, but I get to work a little closer to kids who need it."

"You're following Rangers around, aren't you?" Gia asked. Serena shrugged her shoulders.

"I enjoy helping. Before, after, doesn't matter when," she said.

"Even when it causes you to suffer the effects of a dark energem?"

"Not a good moment in my life," Serena frowned. "Though, not worse than my illness. It's kind of a two on the list of things I wish never happened to me."

Serena looked around at the crash site. She had heard about the battle against Galvanax and how the Rangers had finally beaten him, saving the planet from his destruction.

"So, ninjas, huh?"

"They did well," Gia nodded. "Not that it was easy for them. A lot of personal shit came up."

"Name a team who had it easy," Serena frowned. "Go on, I dare you. Personal shit always interferes and vice-versa."

"They won, though," Gia nodded. "Now it's my job to count all the dead alien bodies and make sure all the known monsters are accounted for. We don't want a repeat of what happened last time."

"Or the time before that," Serena added.

"Or the time before that," Gia said then chuckled.

"I guess we're all just quick to assume we've won."

"That's why I'm doing a body count," Gia nodded. "I mean, I can't say for sure if all the monsters on the ship died in the final battle, but if the big ones are gone, then that's a good sign that it's actually over with."

"Do you know who the big ones are?" Serena asked, and Gia showed her a list.

"Brody, the red Ranger, was a slave on the ship for years. He knows everyone we need to worry about and emailed the list to me last night."

"Perfect," Serena smiled, then pointed to a body, "So who is that?"

"Ripcon."

"He's dead."

"Very dead," Gia nodded. "I've found Ripcon, Cosmo Royale, Drex, he's that pile of ashes, by the way."

"Is he the only one?"

"Yep."

"How did that happen?"

"You sexually assault a Ranger, I let them burn your dead ass for closure," Gia said. Serena gave the yellow Ranger a high-five.

"I taught you well.

"There's Basherbots, Kudabots, Skullgators and all the contestants who wanted to appear on the Galaxy Warriors show for the next couple of months."

"They're all dead?"

"Yep. And over there is Galvanax. He's the Vrak, or Xandred, for this team."

"So that's everyone?"

"Everyone, except one," Gia said. "Tiger's sniffing out for her now."

"Her?"

"Madam Oedius," Gia sighed. "We haven't been able to locate her. Either her body was destroyed in the explosion, which is possible, or she managed to escape."

"How are you going to know which one it is?"

"We can't," Gia shook her head. "That's why I really hope we find her."

"If we don't, the new guys need to know," Serena said. "They need to be ready for an attack. Before they decide to throw their morphers into the ocean or something equally stupid."

Gia glared at her former mentor, "I thought we were done."

"Exactly," Serena smirked, then nudged the guardian.

Tiger returned from her search at this moment and looked to her mistress sadly. When she shook her head, Gia sighed loudly.

"You looked everywhere?" she asked. Tiger nodded. "Even under the ship?"

Tiger still nodded. Gia looked up to Serena.

"What school did you say hired you?"

"Summer Cove High."

"Perfect. And… who exactly are you teaching? Like, several classes or…"

"A girl who can't read or write," Serena said. "A Sarah Thompson. Apparently, she needs a specialized program or…"

"Perfect."

"A Ranger?"

"Pink."

"Damn," Serena muttered. "I was aiming for white."

"There's white on this team," Gia said with a laugh. "Hayley, her friend."

"Does she need help at school?"

"I just protect the cities, I don't teach them," Gia shrugged. "Though, if Madam Oedius did manage an escape, I'll bet you all the Rangers need a little help."

"My specialty," Serena smiled.


	5. Visits and Questions

"How is school going?" Jenny asked as Sarah arrived and set her bag down by the bed. The pink Ranger shrugged and sat down.

"Good, I guess."

"Do you have that aid they promised you?"

"She'll be here tomorrow," Sarah said. "Principal Hastings will call me down to the office when she arrives, and we'll go over what I need from her and stuff."

"Do you know her name?"

"Generic Mrs. Smith," Sarah shrugged. "Doesn't help very much. I just hope she's not… well, a bitch."

"I doubt she'll be a bitch," Jenny chuckled.

She liked these visits with her family. She knew she wouldn't be in the hospital for long, but it was boring to sit in a bed all day, and the doctors and nurses weren't much in the way of conversation. Jenny had no idea how tiring a heart attack could be, and found she barely had any energy at all, so getting out of bed and walking around wasn't an option and daytime television was boring.

"Any news about the drunk driver, yet?" she asked.

"They've reached a bit of a dead end," Sarah sighed. "Calvin and I don't remember much and there were so many people at school who drank the punch and left a little tipsy that it'll be hard to narrow it down to one driver."

"You don't remember anything about the car?"

"It drove off before I knew what happened," Sarah said. "They're questioning mechanics around town though to see if anyone comes in with some damages and if the car belongs to a family at the school. But…"

"That's only if they go to a mechanic in town," Jenny sighed. "Well, I guess it's up to karma now."

Sarah nodded and took her books out of her bag. She set them down on the bed next to Jenny.

"Can you help me with homework?" she asked, and Jenny nodded. She sat up in her bed and took the book and a pencil from Sarah to begin reading out the questions. Sarah was stuck with doing the math in her head, since she couldn't read and couldn't write out her thoughts. Fortunately, it didn't hold her back much at all. Sarah had already gotten used to doing math problems in her head, as it often saved her from having to rush around looking for paper while she worked on a new idea or invention.

The math homework didn't last long, though. Sarah's teacher felt like she couldn't assign her much, especially without an aid, and so often only asked Sarah to complete a few math problems at home if there was someone to help her. Fortunately, it meant Jenny had something to do other than sit in bed and watch TV, but it didn't kill all the time they have together.

"So, what's it like, being normal again?" Jenny asked with a little smile as Sarah packed up her work.

"Normal?"

"Not a Ranger."

"Oh," Sarah shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, we all still hang out and stuff. I guess I kind of miss the training together stuff. I really don't miss having the fate of the world on my shoulders, though."

"Are the Power Stars still gone?" Jenny asked. Sarah nodded her head.

"Well, they haven't come back."

"It's weird how they just… disappear. You guys are all sure they vanished. You didn't lose them?"

"We didn't lose them. The Prism is gone too and that is pretty hard to misplace," Sarah said with a chuckle. "Kelly still has the green Power Star though, so god-forbid we ever need a little power, we at least have that."

"I can't say I miss you being a Ranger," Jenny smiled. "As much as it sucked, I must admit, I'm glad it's me in the hospital this time, and not you."

"That's not funny," Sarah frowned.

"Yeah, but it's true," Jenny chuckled and took her daughter's hand. "You can't imagine what it's like to live knowing that at any second, your daughter could just… be gone."

"I think I can imagine," Sarah said. "My uncles showing up at school and driving me to a hospital gets pretty close to it."

"You're right," Jenny nodded. "How about we both be glad that the worst is behind us? Galvanax and his freaks are gone, and they took Drex with them."

"What about my mother?" Sarah asked and Jenny frowned.

"What do you mean? She's in prison, Sarah. No parole, nothing," Jenny sat up a little straighter, "Unless… did you hear something different?"

"No, but… what if something happens to you?"

"Your mother can't get custody of you from prison," Jenny said. She had always thought that went without saying.

"Okay," Sarah nodded. "So… what does happen, then?"

"What happens if what?"

"If something happens to you?" Sarah asked. "I mean, you always said if something happened to me, you wouldn't know what to do with yourself but… at least it's up to you to figure it out. If something happens to you, the State gets to just… put me somewhere."

"No."

"So then what happens."

"Where do you want to go?" Jenny asked. Sarah shrugged her shoulders. She had never thought of it before. When the State first took custody of her after removing her from her mother's care, she had no idea what was going on. She was in a foster home until a judge decided it would be in her best interest to be with her father. From there, Bill had taken care of her, and he married Jenny only after he knew she would be a good motherly-figure for Sarah. He had done everything to ensure that if something happened to him, Sarah stayed with a woman she already knew and loved.

She was down two parents already. The first being completely unfit and the second having died. All she had left was Jenny, who was lying in a hospital bed just days removed from a heart attack.

"I know you don't know him well, but Porter's got two boys," Jenny told Sarah. "He's a bit strict, but he's a good dad. Or I'm sure Shane would be happy to take you in."

Sarah shrugged her shoulders. She would be fine with Shane becoming a guardian, but she really didn't want to see it happen. As much as she had grown to love her uncle, he wasn't her dad. He wasn't her parent at all.

Jenny took Sarah's hand and sat her down next to her on the bed. She wrapped her arms around her daughter, "Hey, look, I don't plan on going anywhere, alright? Porter's got this hospital thing nailed. When I go home, he'll know exactly how I need to look after myself, and I'll do it. And you're not fighting aliens anymore. If you keep wearing that helmet and those pads, and you don't do anything overly stupid with that head of yours, we're going to be with each other for a long time, deal?"

"You can't make that deal," Sarah shook her head and Jenny cursed her daughter's intelligence. "Last week, no one would have ever imagined you getting sick and here you are. We don't know what's going to happen, so you can't say we'll always be together. You can't promise nothing is going to happen to you."

"I can't, but…"

"So what do I do if something happens to you?"

"You'll stay with Shane," Jenny said. "He's not your dad, he's not me, but he'll be a good person to have around in case of a crisis. That's really what you need at sixteen, right?"

Sarah shrugged her shoulders. Jenny squeezed her a little tighter, "Hey, kid, it's going to be fine. You'll figure it out. It was hard when your dad died, but we managed."

"It sucked and it still sucks."

"But we're okay, right?" Jenny said and Sarah nodded her head.

"I guess."

"So, if something happens to me, it'll suck but you'll be okay. You'll figure it out. And Shane is pretty cool, right?"

"Yeah."

"You'll be okay, Sarah. Just don't worry about me. I'm doing what I have to do. I don't plan on going anywhere. So focus on homework, on your friends, on Kelly, and we'll just… go from there. Deal?"

"Deal," Sarah nodded but as she did, she and her mother heard an all too familiar beep from her communicator. Though the Rangers were no longer Rangers, they still wore their communicators just in case of trouble.

" _Can we meet at the base?"_ Brody asked. _"There's something important we need to know."_

"You should probably leave anyways," Jenny said and looked to the clock. "They won't let me have visitors for much longer any way."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," Jenny smiled and kissed her daughter's cheek. "Be safe, kiddo. I love you."

"I love you too," Sarah said as she scooped up her bag and raced out. Jenny waited until her door was closed before she let out a heavy sigh.

"Oh god, please don't let this be what I think it is," she said.


	6. A New Teacher

Sarah was the last to arrive at the Ranger base. She wasn't used to seeing it the way it was. Since the Rangers were no longer needed, most of their technology had been moved out. No one was using the garage at the Romero house, so it was all being stored there. Soon, Mick would find a way to convert the base back into a paint room. Principal Hastings had really been on him this year about getting someone, _anyone,_ in for the repairs.

Still, though it wasn't going to be a base for long, for now, it was still where the Rangers worked from. So, it was weird when Sarah walked in to see Gia and another woman waiting around inside.

"Everyone is here?" Gia asked, and the ninjas nodded their head. "Guys, this is Serena. Samurai white."

Serena gave the new Rangers a little smile and a wave. "We kicked ass in Panorama… what, five years ago now?"

"It's been a while," Gia nodded, then turned back to the current team. "She came to visit me out in the quarry. After a few premature victories, the city and I thought it was best to do a body count of all the known monsters that were threatening the city, just to be sure they were all dead."

"Drex is gone," Kelly said and smiled at her teammates, "That, I'm sure of."

"Everyone on the list Brody provided has been found," Gia said and showed Brody the list he had emailed her only a few days before. Having lived on Galvanax's ship for a decade, he knew better than anyone the names of the monsters to look for. "Except for one."

"One?" Hayley asked. "You mean one of them got away?"

"We can't be sure of that," Gia shrugged. "All we know for sure is that we didn't find her body."

"Her?" Calvin frowned. "Madam Oedius?"

Gia nodded her head sadly. "Look, a lot of the bodies we found were in pieces. Some burned almost beyond recognition. It's very possible Madam Oedius just… doesn't have a body to count."

"But it's also possible she somehow survived, right?"

"But she was right next to the ship when it blew up," Preston pointed out. "I mean, we all would have been dead if we stayed."

"Alien physiology is a lot different from humans," Serena pointed out. "For example, my team fought the Nighlok. They were poisoned by water and rejuvenated by the Sanzu River. It's the other way around for us. It's likely the explosion wasn't enough to kill her."

"But it killed everyone else?" Sarah asked.

"Everyone on the list," Gia promised. "I saw their bodies for myself. I counted twice. They're currently being removed and disposed of in a manner where they will never return."

"Except, maybe, Madam Oedius," Levi said and the Rangers all looked a little glum. Gia shrugged her shoulders.

"Look, guys, it's not the best news but if you've bested her once, you can do it again. You already know she might come up, just keep up with your training and you'll be ready when she strikes."

"There's just one problem with that," Calvin said and turned all his pockets inside out. "We have no Powers."

"What?" Gia frowned.

"Damn oceans," Serena muttered.

"Our Power Stars disappeared a couple of days after we killed Galvanax," Brody explained. "The Prism disappeared too."

"So… none of you have any powers?" Gia asked. "Not a one?"

"I do," Kelly held out her green Power Star, then turned to Sarah, "Sarah, you made this one, so it's not connected to the Prism. Any chance you can make another?"

"I… I modified that one," Sarah shrugged. "Madam Oedius found all the parts and gave it power. I… I wouldn't know where to start."

"Sarah, right?" Serena asked and looked to the pink Ranger.

"Yeah."

"Any chance you want to make Power Stars for high school credits?"

"What?" Sarah frowned. "I don't think Principal Hastings will approve…"

"She doesn't have to. From tomorrow forward, I'm your aid," Serena smiled. "Mrs. Smith, teaching Rangers and their children since… well, since Gia."

Serena chuckled as she turned to the silver Guardian. "You were my first Ranger student."

"Wait, you're Mrs. Smith?" Sarah asked. "And you're..."

"The white Samurai Ranger," Serena nodded. "Principal Hastings was good friends with Principal Chesterfield, so I came highly recommended, post mortem, of course. I needed a transfer and thought maybe Summer Cove would be a good place to consider. Honestly, I thought it'd take a little more digging to stumble upon the Rangers. Didn't think I'd be assigned pink."

"She was aiming for white," Gia chuckled.

"And I missed," Serena said, then looked to Sarah with a smile, "If you think you can create six new Power Stars, I'll get you the high school credits you need."

"So, instead of class…"

"Pick a class to skip, I'll get you the credit for it," Serena nodded. "Creating a Power Star is much more studying than…"

"English," Sarah shrugged, then looked to Kelly apologetically. "Sorry…"

"I can't complain," Kelly said. "You'll still help me in math and science, though, right?"

"Always."

"Good, so we're set!" Gia smiled and looked to Serena. "In case Madam Oedius does return, the Ninjas will be ready to fight and hopefully we'll have some Power Stars up and running by then."

"Sounds good," Serena said. "I can take it from here, Gia."

"Serena's the best," Gia promised the team as she started to leave. "A little… crazy at times but she knows what she's doing. Well, usually. And as always, call if you need anything."

When Gia was gone, Serena looked around at the Rangers, then ushered them outside, "Alright, you heard the news. Time for training. You may know the way of the Ninja, but have you ever trained like a Samurai before?"


	7. Talks and Take-Out

It was Serena's idea to have Kelly morph. None of the other Rangers had power, but until that changed, she felt they needed to get used to fighting monsters at half-strength. Madam Oedius could reappear at any time, and there was no telling how long it would take Sarah to come up with six Power Stars.

"Good, you're getting better. Brody, watch your feet!" Serena called out as Brody and Calvin took on Kelly. Sarah sat back on a log to watch. Hayley leaned over.

"So, what do we think of the Samurai?"

Sarah shrugged. "Gia trusts her. We should too."

"Seems like she knows what she's doing," Hayley nodded. She sat next to Sarah, "Can I tell you something?"

"Like what?" Sarah asked and sipped her water. Hayley shrugged.

"It's about Kelly. I don't meant to get between the two of you but… lately… she's been sleeping with Kody."

Sarah spit her water out and felt some of it go through her nose. Then she chuckled.

"That's not a euphemism, right?"

"Literally," Hayley nodded. "As in, when I wake up in the morning, they're both in her bed sleeping."

"Are you jealous?" Sarah teased and nudged Hayley gently. The white Ranger shook her head.

"No. Well, a little, but… Look, Kody's got his routine. He sleeps with me or my parents, depending on who goes to bed last and… I know Kelly's been with us a while and Kody knows her as one of the pack now but… it's just not like him."

"You're super jealous."

"I was awake last night," Hayley said. "Kody went to bed with my parents and, in the middle of the night, Kelly had a nightmare. I didn't let her know I was up too because I didn't know if she needed someone to talk to yet but… Kody walked in. He calmed her down and stayed with her. I think that's what he's been doing."

"Okay. Isn't that what pets do?"

"They do," Hayley nodded. "And I'm more than happy to share Kody. It's just… maybe Kelly isn't quite over… Drex."

Sarah looked to her friends and saw that Brody and Calvin had taken a break from their spar and now Preston and Levi were fighting with Kelly. Sarah's eyes lingered on her girlfriend and she sighed.

"What can I do?"

"She doesn't talk to me. I asked her about it on the way to school and she just said she'd rather not talk. Do you think she might talk to you?"

"She has been," Sarah nodded. "I can have her over afterwards. You'll have to tell her parents she won't be home for dinner, though."

"Can do."

Hayley rose to her feet as Serena called her and Sarah over. As they prepared to fight the green Ranger, Sarah grabbed Hayley's arm.

"Hey, thanks," she said. "I appreciate you looking out for her."

"She's grown on me," Hayley shrugged with a smile. "Take care of her, alright?"

"Promise."

-Ninja-Steel-

"I'm exhausted!" Kelly whined as she dragged herself to Sarah's. "You know, when Serena said you all needed to be able to fight without Powers, I think she forgot that even with powers, Rangers still get tired."

"How's that any different from a regular battle?" Sarah asked. "Especially if Madam Oedius shows up before I can get even just one Power Star up and running?"

"I… I… okay, so that was good training for me too, but I'm pooped! You Rangers are still tough, even without the suits."

"Thanks," Sarah smiled. "You're doing pretty well yourself, though. I thought for sure I had you."

"Yeah, I've been getting better. Less cookies, more superman," Kelly chuckled at herself. "I mean, a salad is no cheeseburger but when it's the world you're trying to protect, that's really one of the smaller sacrifices."

"It's one that's appreciated," Sarah said, then stopped walking and put her arms around her girlfriend. She felt Kelly stiffen up as she did this, and immediately let her hands drop. Kelly looked down sadly.

"Sorry, I'm working on that. I just… don't like being restricted still."

"I get it," Sarah nodded, and she did understand. After her kidnapping by her mother and Drex, Sarah had been a little more sensitive than usual, even without the presence of any obvious threats. It took her body a while to remind itself she was with friends, family, and people who didn't want to see her hurt. "But you are working on it, right? Like, it's getting easier and stuff."

"I mean, it's slow," Kelly shrugged. "It's still a nightmare or two a night, but I'm not freaking out anymore. I know Drex is gone."

"But I still can't hold you?" Sarah asked.

"We'll get there."

"Hayley told me you were sleeping with Kody," Sarah said. "She didn't say much more than that. She's just trying to help…"

"It's okay."

"She and I both just want to make sure you're okay."

"Kody helps," Kelly admitted. "He comes in after my nightmares and just lays with me. I have my Power Star and knowing he's looking out for me, I fall asleep better. If I get another nightmare, he nudges me awake before it gets bad."

"Have you called Gia at all?"

"No," Kelly shook her head. "She said I was allowed some bad days. To be honest, hearing that helped. I survived an assault. I'm not going to just… bounce back."

"I just want to make sure when you do take a step back, it's still followed by two steps forward."

"Sarah, I'm fine," Kelly smiled, and she put her arms around her girlfriend. "I know who wants to hurt me and who doesn't. It's my reflexes I still need to control. And really, who controls their reflexes?"

"I do," Sarah said, and then Kelly poked her in the ribs, which caused Sarah to jump and scream. Kelly laughed.

"Oh, yeah, I saw all the control there."

"I wasn't ready," Sarah chuckled.

"Yeah, so that was reflexes," Kelly teased, then tried to poke Sarah on the other side but the pink Ranger caught her arm.

"Too slow."

"Hey! Are you girls done flirting?" Shane called from the porch of the house. "I'm ordering Chinese for dinner. What do you want?"

"Shane doesn't cook," Sarah whispered to Kelly. "We've been eating out every night. I can't wait until Jenny's home."

"She won't be able to cook for a while," Kelly said. "When my grandfather had his heart attack, he was on the couch for months. He was a lot older, though, but still."

"Great," Sarah rolled her eyes.

"Any requests?" Shane called and put his phone to his ear. "It's ringing and I'm not going to play monkey in the middle."

"Yeah, next time, we eat at your place," Sarah whispered to Kelly and chuckled. "Something homemade."

"Too late!" Shane called out then went back inside the house to place the order.

"How about we trade lunches for tomorrow?" Kelly suggested. "I'll take whatever you get, and I'll let you have tonight's leftovers from home."

"Seriously?"

Kelly nodded. Sarah threw herself into her girlfriend's arms.

"I knew there was a reason I love you."

"Yep, that's it," Kelly chuckled. "That's the only reason."


	8. The Candidates

Calvin slammed his locker shut as a group of kids walked passed him, discussing the good time they had at homecoming the week before. He didn't feel angry with them until they mentioned how wasted they were by the end of the night. They, like most, didn't shy away from the spiked punch.

It was all a joke to them. Calvin and Sarah nearly died because someone in this school thought it would be okay to drive drunk, and everyone was just laughing it off, pretending like getting drunk in high school made them cool.

It irritated him more that the police had hit a dead end. With so many kids having gotten drunk, they were looking less and less into the incident and more into the school itself. Dances were cancelled while Principal Hastings tried to deal with the police, but that didn't matter much to kids. They would have their own parties, steal booze from their parents, and get drunk again.

And potentially drive.

"Hey!" Hayley said as she stood next to Calvin with a smile. She hugged her books to her chest, "So, I was thinking, since Mick is letting us have one project to work on for the year, and he's got a lot of tools and parts, maybe we can work on Nitro. Together?"

"No," Calvin shook his head and started to walk off. Hayley followed him.

"But she needs to be fixed," Hayley said. "And with the new budget, Mick can afford everything you need and more. She can run like new and it might not cost you a thing."

"I don't think I'm fixing her up," Calvin said and Hayley stepped in front of him, stopping him where he stood.

"What?"

"I just… I don't think I want her fixed."

Hayley gave him a look, questioning his words for just a moment before she realized this wasn't a joke. She pulled him to the side of the hallway and frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"I drove a go-kart into the pond," Calvin sighed. Hayley shook her head.

"Yeah? I thought we were passed that?"

"Me too!" Calvin said. "But then I get my license and… just a few months later, another accident. Maybe… Maybe I wasn't meant to drive."

"Calvin, that wasn't your fault. Everyone and their mother thinks so."

"But clearly something bad happens whenever I do try," Calvin said. "Some people are just better off taking the bus or having their amazing girlfriends drive them around all the time. Right?"

He looked to Hayley, begging she let this go. His eyes were big, he stuck out his lip and he took her hand gently. Hayley was almost swayed and then she shook her head.

"Calvin, this isn't like you. Nitro is your baby. You built her yourself. And you love driving. Once you got the keys in your hands, I couldn't get them back!"

"Yeah, but…"

"Just, fix the truck, alright," Hayley said. "And maybe by the time you're done, this will have blown over."

As Hayley said this, Calvin heard some of the other kids walk by.

"My parents are out of town and my brother said he could get us all the alcohol we wanted. You down?" one said to the other.

Calvin shook his head. "No. Sorry, Hayley, but with people like that, I think it's better if I just stay off the roads for now."

"Cal…" Hayley said but let Calvin go as he walked away. She watched him go, then jumped when Sarah appeared next to her. "Where did you come from?"

"Well, I used to live in Amber Beach," Sarah answered. "Though, I did spend some time in Ocean Bluff, until dad married mom. But, I was born in Mariner Bay."

"I meant today," Hayley chuckled.

"Oh. Locker," Sarah said and pointed across the hall, then she looked to where Calvin had gone, "Uh, is he okay?"

"Mick's letting us work all year on a project of our choosing. He already approved Calvin fixing up Nitro."

"That's perfect!"

"Only Calvin won't do it," Hayley sighed, and Sarah frowned.

"It's not like it's that big a job. A new door, maybe. Some paint, popping out some dents."

"He could upgrade the engine too," Hayley nodded. "Shop class got a bigger budget, so Mick can afford better parts than Calvin ever could."

"And Calvin doesn't want to do it?"

"He's scared."

"Of…"

"What happened," Hayley said, then brought her fist together and made a crashing sound. When Sarah nodded to show she understood, Hayley looked to her pleadingly. "Can you please talk to him. Tell him it wasn't his fault."

"Uh, I can try again," Sarah shrugged. "But I think I already did that in the hospital."

"Maybe he'll listen to you outside of the hospital. Now that we know you're good," Hayley said.

"So, you tried talking to him?" Sarah asked and Hayley nodded. "And he didn't listen to you?"

"I wasn't in the car with him."

"Thank god," Sarah chuckled. "Or he'd never even look at Nitro again."

"Can you try?"

"Sure," Sarah said. "Where did he go?"

"He's probably in shop class. Not fixing Nitro."

"Shop, right," Sarah nodded and left. Hayley watched her go, begging the pink Ranger could do a better job at bringing Calvin around, and then turned to head to her homeroom class. As she did, she saw Mrs. Finch hanging up a poster on the wall. She looked to it, then to her teacher.

"Class president? Already?"

"New year, new vote," Mrs. Finch nodded her head. "Are you thinking of running?"

"I… I don't know. Who's running?"

"Who do you think?" Mrs. Finch asked and then gestured over to Victor, who was at his locker, already planning his victory speech with Monty. He had already been elected class president every year since he was a freshman and every year, as expected, he didn't accomplish much of anything.

"Anyone else?"

"Not yet. We're hoping someone else runs," Mrs. Finch said. "You know, spice things up at the school a little bit. Lead with a bit more dignity and school pride than we're used to seeing. You know, there is a lot you can accomplish as class president. I mean, you can start new clubs, you can discuss some of the school issues and fight for a solution."

"School issues? Like the drinking at homecoming?"

"Drinking and driving? A lesson too many teens learn the hard way," Mrs. Finch sighed. "But I guess, as class President, you would have more power to raise awareness about the dangers of it."

"Where do I sign up?"

"Talk to Principal Hastings about running," Mrs. Finch said. Before Hayley could run off, she grabbed her arm, "Careful, though. Victor's only ever won by default. No one's been against him. With his track record, you very well might win. Are you sure you're ready for the responsibility?"

"More than ready," Hayley nodded.

-Ninja-Steel-

Sarah knocked before she entered shop class. Since it was before the first period, there was no one there except for Calvin, and Mick and Redbot, who were trying to decide what to do with the Ranger base now that they knew Madam Oedius might still be around. Sarah let them be as she approached Calvin.

"I can work on her with you and Hayley, if you want," she suggested and pointed to Nitro. "She can't be that much harder than my hoverboard, right?"

"Hayley sent you here, didn't she?" Calvin asked and Sarah nodded her head.

"She's a bit worried. Not working on Nitro isn't like you," she said. "And giving up on driving."

"I nearly got you killed."

"No, the drunk loser in car number two almost got _us_ killed," Sarah said. "You're the hero who pulled us out."

"Does it make a difference?"

"Police aren't looking for you."

"The police aren't looking for anyone," Calvin said. "Mom told me yesterday they've pretty much given up. They have better things to do."

"So your answer is to give up too?" Sarah asked. She hopped up on Calvin's work table. "You remember my holo-clones, right?"

"Of course."

"You remember how after that went screwy, I stopped inventing things, right?"

"Yeah."

"You know how I'm inventing again. Last night, I turned an old remote-control car into a personal butler for mom when she gets home. That way, if she needs something, she can get it herself. It's got an arm and a camera and it can even go up and down stairs. It's pretty sweet!"

"So?"

"So, bad things happen, you step away from them a bit, realize you're miserable, have someone remind you that just because something bad happened, doesn't mean you should stop doing what you love, get back into it, built mom a robot butler and get hired to build Ranger suits – solo," Sarah said and smiled. "You're in the miserable phase, but it's okay, because Hayley and I are pushing you to the reminding you to keep going phase."

"So the next step is that I build a robot butler?"

"No, that's my thing," Sarah said, then pointed to Nitro, "The next thing is you find her weak points and reinforce them so the next accident isn't as bad."

"The next one?"

"Hypothetically."

"And what if I've just completely given up on engines and want to do something else. Something completely different."

"Like what?"

"I don't know," Calvin said and looked around the classroom. At that moment, he saw Mrs. Finch in the hallway putting up a poster. "Run for class president."

"You should!" Sarah's eyes lit up. "That would be amazing! Victor sucked last year!"

"What? No, Sarah, I was…"

"The class president pretty much runs the school, right? You would oversee organizing events, bringing up issues in the school, changing things for the better."

"I can't do that."

"You really only need one issue you want to work on," Sarah said. "Maybe the police have given up on the drunk drivers, but we haven't."

"Sarah…"

"Teach kids how bad drinking and driving is. How you and I could have been killed over a stupid mistake. Use Nitro to show them how even a tough truck can take a beating and that as long as people are idiots, no one is safe. Your thing could be how you want to make school safer for everyone."

"And you think kids would vote for me?"

"Your competition is Victor," Sarah said. "You could tell the school you want the cafeteria to only serve their mystery meat and you would probably still take the lead."

"Hayley does say I'm pretty charming. And as class president, people would have to listen to what I have to say."

"Well, maybe not have to, but they would hear it," Sarah nodded. "I mean, I tune our real president out all the time, but…"

"I'll do it," Calvin said. "I'll run for class president."

"And you'll fix Nitro."

"No," Calvin shook his head, then raced off. Sarah sighed and looked to Calvin's truck, which was parked outside the window in the garage.

"Okay, baby steps," she said. "He'll be back, though."


	9. A Clean Race

Calvin found Hayley after school, ready to share his news. He had signed up to run for class president and he wanted her to be the first person he told. As they walked home, he couldn't stop smiling.

"So, you know how we have school elections coming up, right?"

Hayley smiled brightly and nodded her head, eager to share her news as well.

"You'll never guess who is running," Calvin said with a smirk.

"Oh, I think I know."

"You do?" Calvin's smile dropped into a frown. "How do you know?"

"I signed up for it," Hayley said and looked to Calvin questioningly. "Of course I would know."

"You… you signed up?" Calvin asked. "But… I signed up."

"We both did?" Hayley said. "We'll be running against each other?"

"Why did you sign up?" Calvin asked and stopped walking so he could look directly to Hayley. The white Ranger shrugged.

"I just thought it might be a good way to get some kids to rethink what they were doing," Hayley told him. "I mean, Mrs. Finch said the class president can talk about a lot of issues and that kind of stuff so I thought it would be a good opportunity to get kids to rethink drinking and driving after parties."

"Me too!" Calvin said and the smile returned to his face. "Hayls, this is amazing!"

"This is amazing?" Hayley asked him.

"We're both running for the same reason. Now it doesn't matter who wins, because either way, we'll be fighting the same issue."

"Unless Victor wins."

"Victor's always won by default. No one's run against him yet. And it's not like he's ever done anything. We're guaranteed a win."

"I guess the odds are better for both of us," Hayley said and smiled. "And if it doesn't matter who wins between us, then we don't have to argue with each other. We can just state the facts."

"Nothing personal," Calvin nodded. "We present the issues, we present how we're going to make school a better place and then the people decide. Neither of us loses."

"This is perfect," Hayley said, then looked to Calvin, "Though, we are still opponents. I was going to ask you to help me with my campaign but I guess I'll have to ask one of the others."

"How about we split our friends?" Calvin asked. Two of them can vote for me, two of them can vote for you."

"Sounds fair," Hayley nodded. "So who gets who?"

"You pick first," Calvin offered. Hayley took a moment to think. She wanted a friend she thought could help with her campaign and make it a little easier on her to earn some votes.

"Preston," she said.

"Preston?"

"He can do a magic show."

"That no one watches?"

"Hey, he's getting better," Hayley said. "He's a performer, I'm sure he'll be able to help me attract some attention. Who is your pick?"

"Brody," Calvin said.

"Why Brody?"

"He's a likeable guy," Calvin shrugged. "And he's a natural leader. He can give me advice on what I need to do."

"Good choice," Hayley nodded. "I'll take Kelly."

"You don't want Sarah? She was with me in the accident. She could help you with her story."

"Kelly's a writer. She can help with speeches," Hayley reasoned.

"Then I'll take Sarah," Calvin said. "And since Levi doesn't go to the school anyways, he can't vote. He can stay neutral."

"Sounds fair."

"Remember, we don't play dirty. Only one of us can win and we're both bringing awareness to the same issue. It doesn't matter."

"No dirty play," Hayley agreed. "This election doesn't mean more to us than each other."

-Ninja-Steel-

"So, let me get this straight," Serena said as she tried to process Sarah's story. If she was going to be the pink Ranger's aid, she needed to know exactly what Sarah needed help with. All she had heard from Principal Hastings was that there was a bright girl with a lot of potential who needed help after suffering from an accident. "Your mother, the biological one, was a prostitute?"

"Is," Sarah nodded.

"Your dad was her john and he knocked her up. He begged her to keep you and she did, but when you were born, she didn't want you, but she didn't let him have you?"

"Yes."

"When the police found you in a brothel, he finally got custody. Flashforward twelve years, bio mother comes back and kidnaps you hoping to start pimping you out? Drugs you with something you still don't know what, but you escape and Gia, Jordan and Tiger get you home?"

"Yes."

"But bio mom and her pimp are stupid, so they try again, succeed a little more, kick you around a bit to give you a concussion, drug you again, and then you escape."

"Yes."

"Then your girlfriend's dad writes an article, convincing homophobes that your only mission in life is to turn girls into lesbians, so boys from your school beat you up on the street to teach you a lesson?"

"Well, they got a few blows in, but I beat them."

"Then you create a time machine, try to save your father, but when you can't you lash out at Mick, so Calvin and Hayley take you away, but when you get away from them, you get hit by a car, earning yourself another concussion?"

"Not my finest moment, I'll admit."

"Then your first seizure?"

"Yes."

"And the Kelly's mom pretends to be all innocent. Kidnaps you and her, puts a shock collar around you and shocks you whenever and wherever because you turned her daughter into a lesbian?"

"Yes."

"Making you have more seizures?"

"Uh-huh."

"Then, after that, this princess from another galaxy and her monster body guard attack the city. But you don't know she's evil when you see she's hurt and when you try to save her, you die. So she uses her powers to bring you back to life, heals most of the damage to your brain, but you realize that you can't read or write. At all."

"Which brings us to now," Sarah nodded.

"With the added detail that when you were on Galvanax's ship, you could read his alien language no problem."

"Right."

"Kid, that's fucked up," Serena said with a loud sigh and a shake of the head, "And I dated a Nighlok."

"Wait? What?"

"Long story," Serena shook her head. "Doesn't end well. For him. I got a son out of it."

"What?" Sarah frowned. "Your son is a monster?"

"A _quarter_ monster and we healed that part with… well, magic water, basically," Serena said. "He's a regular boy who loves regular kid stuff, like Power Rangers, Batman, Lego and trucks."

"So… you slept with one of the monsters?" Sarah asked. " _That's_ fucked up. Are you sure you're the most qualified person to…"

"Yes."

"Seriously?" Sarah frowned. "So, there isn't a Ranger teacher who… maybe didn't sleep with the enemy?"

"Well, there is Dr. Oliver," Serena said with a shrug, "But to be fair to me, he started off as the enemy. I mean, there was a little brainwashing and stuff happening but… Look, we're Rangers, we're no squeaky clean. But I can be a good tutor and I can help with the Ranger stuff and school. So… you really can't read or spell anything?"

"Nope."

"Your name?"

"Nope."

"The name of your school?"

"Nope."

"Not even orally?"

"I can try," Sarah shrugged. "But if you want me to orally spell out every word on my assignments, we're going to be here a long, long time."

"Good point. So you just need someone to read to you and scribe for you?"

"Pretty much."

"But everything else is good?"

"Yes," Sarah nodded.

"Perfect," Serena smiled. "I've got to say, you're much easier than Gia so far. She was a tough one. But if I can help her, I can certainly help you."

"And you'll get me credit for English, so I can work on building new Power Stars in case Madam Oedius shows up?"

"Just tell me what you need to pass and I'll get it for you."

"Not just pass," Sarah shook her head. "I want to be an engineer. I need to get into a good university and I need the best marks possible, so I stand out. I can't just pass. I need to be top of the class."

"You let me worry about that," Serena said. "Though, to be fair, designing Ranger tech and weapons is kind of the best way of getting into an engineering program."

"Not when your identity is a secret," Sarah shook her head. "Please, Serena."

"I've got you, kid," Serena promised with a smile.


	10. The Speeches

Just like every year, the campaign for class president started off slow. No one put much thought into it except for the candidate, and since Victor had been the only one running for three years straight, everyone just turned up to cast their vote and then left.

This year, the campaign started slow, but with three candidates, more people were getting interested. Calvin and Hayley had both decided to run for class president. Since the police hadn't been able to find the driver responsible for crashing into Sarah and Calvin, and because most of the kids in the school were so unaware of the dangers of drinking and driving, the couple was sure they would be able to make some changes from a position of power. However, first, they needed to be class president.

"You're going to be fine," Brody encouraged Calvin as they waited backstage for his turn at the speeches. Hayley was already on the stage, delivering what sounded like an incredible speech. She had always been a lot more comfortable than Calvin with public speaking, and with Kelly and Preston on her side, Kelly could write her an amazing speech while Preston was used to performing in front of others and would certainly had some tips that he could share with her.

He was proud of her. He knew regardless of who won, one of them would be raising the issue that had them both running. However, right now, he needed her words of encouragement more than anything. Unfortunately, he had to settle for Brody, who didn't have much of a clue about what an election was, and Sarah, who was too excited about anything to understand Calvin's hesitation.

He and Hayley had decided to split their friends. Since Levi wouldn't be able to vote, as he wasn't a student, the Rangers were split straight down the middle. It kept the race fair, as no one would be forced to pick sides, and it allowed Hayley and Calvin the help they needed.

"What if I forget what I'm going to say?" Calvin asked and Sarah held up his cue cards.

"That's why you have these."

"But what if I forget how to read?" Calvin asked and Sarah glared at him. He shook his head, "No, like seriously. When I get nervous it's like my brain stops working and…"

"It's going to be fine," Brody said. "I mean, what's the worst that can happen?"

"I forget what I'm going to say, say something stupid, everyone laughs at me, when I run off the stage I trip, fall and wind up brain dead in a hospital somewhere with you guys pulling the plug."

Brody and Sarah looked to each other with a shrug.

"Oddly specific, but okay," Sarah said. She put her hand on Calvin's arm, "Look, that's not going to happen. You're not going to say something stupid, no one here is going to laugh…"

"It's a high school," Calvin said. "Everyone will laugh."

"So then laugh with them," Sarah told him. "Laugh at yourself. If you forget what you're going to say, just roll with it. They're not electing cue-card Calvin. They're electing you and what you believe in and what you can do."

"Okay…"

"And you won't fall and get brain damage from a little trip," Brody said and pointed to Sarah, "It took her quite a few blows to the head before it cracked."

"Ha-ha," Sarah stuck her tongue out at Brody, then nodded at Calvin, "Though, he is right. And it's not the worst thing in the world. Look, the worst that can happen is you mess up here and people don't like Hayley so Victor is president again. Right?"

"I guess."

"So go out there!" Sarah could hear Principal Hastings calling Calvin up to the stage and had to push him on. Calvin stumbled over to the mic and looked out at all the students waiting for him to speak. He gulped, which echoed on the speakers and then looked to his cue cards. The words were spinning, so he blinked, looked to the crowd again and tried to find something to focus on. Hayley had told him once about that trick. If he could look at the back of the room, or find one familiar face that made him feel comfortable, he could focus his attention there and drown everyone else out. He saw Levi, who had offered himself up as a volunteer for set up and clean up after the speeches and decided to speak just to Levi.

As Calvin presented his speech, Hayley found her way backstage to Brody and Sarah, looking more nervous than she had been before her own speech.

"Was he okay?" she asked her two teammates, who shrugged.

"He's up there now."

"Public speaking is a huge fear of his," Hayley said. "We always do presentations together. This is his first time going solo."

"He's doing fine so far," Brody said as he looked to the stage. "Looks like he's found Levi."

"At least he's reading off the cue-cards," Sarah pointed out. "He'll be fine. I know it."

As soon as she said it, one cue-card slipped out of Calvin's hand, and as he reached to pick it up, they all fell and scattered across the stage. Calvin stumbled as he picked them up but he couldn't remember the order they went. He felt his face get hot and knew he was turning bright read. He decided just to gather up his cue cards and hope for the best as he straightened himself up. The others students were laughing at his disaster and he didn't know what to do.

"Oh boy," Preston whispered. He had been in this position before. His magic shows never went exactly according to plan and until he learned to anticipate a hiccup or two, this would often be the moment where his magic shows became comedy, and he was the butt of the joke. "This isn't going to be good."

"You just had to say it, huh?" Kelly asked and nudged Sarah, who shrugged.

"Overconfident," she said and then stepped up to the stage. Staying behind the curtain, she whispered to Calvin, who was still trying to find where he left off. "Keep it going, Cal. You've got this!"

Calvin looked to her, nodded his head and used what he had of his notes to remember his points.

"Right… um… so, uh, as I was saying…" Calvin glanced at his cards once more, then tucked them in his pocket. "I think I would make the best class president because I… I know this school and I have good ideas and… um… well, unlike Victor, I'm not just going to pass off all my duties to the rest of student council. There's no Monty behind me, doing all the real work."

Calvin heard a few chuckles from the crowd. It wasn't the laugh he thought he might get, but it was something.

"I mean, I have real issues I want to address," Calvin continued. "I want to make the school and our community safer. Victor just wants another trophy or a ribbon or whatever glory he gets from the title of president. I mean, there's already a Victor in the Oval Office. Do we really want one in school?"

Calvin got a few more laughs here and his confidence started to grow. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

"Look, Victor's a fun guy," Calvin said. "I mean, you can always depend on him for a laugh. When we have our dances or our parties, he'll always show up. But he's going to make a fool of himself. Hell, he might have been that one driver that nearly killed me! And this is the guy we've had a president for three years? Don't you think our school can do better?"

The crowd started to cheer with Calvin. He smiled.

"We can still have dances. We can still have parties, but aren't they so much more fun when we know we'll make it to the next one. Who wants their next party to be their last. If you vote me for president, I'm going to work with you to ensure that we all party hard, and we party safe. Victor's not going to do anything like that for you. So… A vote for Calvin is a vote for the best year of your high school lives!"

Calvin saw his school clapping for him, and while it wasn't as enthusiastic as he had imagined when he, Sarah and Brody had written his original speech, he had to admit, it felt pretty good knowing he had earned these applause on his own.

Then came questions. Calvin had just a few minutes to answer a few questions from his classmates about his promises. He got the questions he expected, like how he planned on keeping school dances fun despite the safety concern, and why he thought the school would even honour his promises, considering right now, all dances were banned any way.

Then, he got a question he wasn't ready for.

"What makes you better than Hayley?" one student asked. Calvin felt all the words leave his head. Hayley was the best thing that ever happened to him. She was his whole world, the love of his life. He could never consider what made him better than her. It just wasn't possible.

But he and Hayley were competitors. There could only be one president and so if he wanted to win, he had to come up with one reason.

 _Stick to the election,_ he told himself. _Election wise, there must be something I can offer than she can't._

"I… I… I can't get pregnant!" he said before he even had much time to think about his choice of reason. "I… I mean, there's nothing to worry about there. No distractions, no crazy hormones or abortions. I mean, I'm against them, but I know Hayley, for a fact, is not!"

"How do you know this for a fact?" the student asked. Calvin was already kicking himself. He looked to Levi, who had a very worried look on his face. Like it was painful to listen to Calvin speaking now. Calvin knew he had to stop, but he couldn't let a question go unanswered.

Could he?

Before he could debate what to do in his head, his question was answered for him. The student who asked him made her own assumption.

"Has Hayley had an abortion?"

"Uh… I mean… I… I can't really say… uh…"

"She's had an abortion…"

"Okay!" Principal Hastings finally cut in, having rushed up on stage when she saw Calvin's answers had gotten away from him. "Alright, on that note, our last speech of the afternoon; here is Victor Vincent!"

Calvin rushed himself off stage, only to find Brody and Preston waiting for him.

"Well… the speech part was…"

"I mean… you did it," the boys stumbled over their words. Calvin looked to them.

"I did good at first, right?"

"Which part?" Brody asked. "The part where you completely trash talked Victor?"

"Or the part where you just revealed something extremely personal about Hayley?" Preston added. Calvin felt all the blood drain from his body. He looked to Brody.

"This is the worst that can happen. I'd so rather be brain dead right now. Where is Hayley? I have to apologize."

"She ran off," Brody answered.

"Oh god," Calvin started to sway and sat himself down on the nearest stool. That was when Levi came over, looking very concerned.

"What was that?" he asked. "You just… completely destroyed everyone up there!"

"The crowd laughed at my Victor joke, so I just went with it," Calvin said. "Do you think he's pissed?"

Levi pointed to the stage, where Victor had scrapped his own speech and was now fighting for the mic with Principal Hastings as he listed all the reasons he believed Calvin was an asshole.

"I don't think he's taking it well."

"I get nervous speaking in public," Calvin said. "I mean… Hayley knows that. She'll get it, right?"

"Calvin, that wasn't nervous," Levi shook his head. "Nervous is forgetting the lyrics to a song you've sung a hundred times and accidentally saying I love poo instead of I love you. What you did is… an actual shit show."

"I couldn't come up with any other reason why Hayley was better than me?"

"Your speeches were the same and everyone in the school and their mother knows you're a couple," Preston said. "Maybe it wouldn't have won you the election, but if you had just said that you and Hayley were both equally qualified and that you didn't care who won, we wouldn't be here right now."

"Oh man, that would have been much better," Calvin nodded. "So… so much better."

"So… is it true?" Brody asked and his friends looked to his. "The abortion thing?"

"Not now, Brody," Preston scolded, but Calvin shook his head.

"No, no, you guys might as well know the truth. God knows all the rumours that are going to be spreading anyway."

"So it's true?" Levi asked.

Calvin took a deep breath, "It was just a couple months after Hayley and I started dating…"


	11. The Real Truth

"I mean, we were sixteen! Who the hell knows what they want at sixteen! No offense, Sarah."

"None taken?" Sarah frowned and watched as Hayley continued to pace in the school's garage. She had run off there at the end of Calvin's speech out of embarrassment and so she would have some time to cool down before she murdered him. Sarah and Kelly had followed her out, reasoning that if Hayley wanted to discuss what had come up, she might be more comfortable with the girls.

"So, he and I discussed it and while neither of us could really agree over what was the best decision, we both knew we couldn't do this right now. So, we went _together_ and ended the pregnancy _together._ And he's throwing that in my face now? Now, he's the good guy and I'm the bad guy because I'm the one who brought up abortion?"

"You're not the bad guy," Kelly said, but Hayley wasn't done her rant.

"I mean, why did he have to say anything?" Hayley asked. "He didn't have to answer that question. He could have said no comment and moved on. He could have just said that since he was in the accident, he had a bit more passion behind the issue. Why did he have to bring that up? With the whole school watching!"

"I don't know," Sarah answered.

"Now the whole fucking school knows!" Hayley shouted and kicked over a tire rim. "I mean, we both agreed we didn't need the gossip, the rumours, or people sticking their noses where it didn't belong. Our parents don't even know! It was for the best that way. We _both_ agreed to that. This was all _our_ decision!"

"And there's nothing wrong with it," Kelly stated.

"Yeah, and you know what, even if this wasn't our decision, he's not the one carrying a freaking baby for nine months. He's not the one walking around the school with a watermelon strapped to his gut, squeezing into our desks, running to the washroom every five minutes."

"He's not," Sarah agreed. "You're right."

"But even if I made the call and he disagreed, that no one else's business, right? I mean… it's just… why do they get to be the good guys in all of this?" Hayley asked and finally took a seat and stopped pacing. She looked to Sarah and Kelly. "Why do the guys always look like the freaking heroes? Either they're against it, and everything sees them saving the baby's life, and they're so giving and selfless and women are monsters. Or they go with it, and everyone thinks it's so sweet that they're being so supportive and understanding and women are still monsters for making them do this? How… how is that far?"

"I don't know," Kelly shrugged. "It's… it's not."

"Where do you stand?" Hayley asked as she looked to the girls. Sarah shrugged. She hadn't been in a relationship before Kelly and with Kelly, the issue of abortion really wasn't an issue at all. This wasn't a position she had to take yet.

"I mean… I guess we support you," Kelly said. "You shouldn't have a baby if you don't want it. Too many people do."

"But if this happened to you?" Hayley asked. Kelly and Sarah pointed to each other.

"Science isn't that good yet," Sarah said.

"But… with Drex," Hayley said. "Let's say… after what he did, you were pregnant. Would you go through with it?"

"Okay!" Sarah chimed in, getting to her feet so Kelly wouldn't have to answer and Hayley, in her desperation for support, wouldn't ask anymore invasive questions. "Let's just all agree that regardless of what we would do, Kelly and I completely support the decision you _and Calvin_ made together and what he did was real shitty, alright?"

"Alright," Hayley nodded. Sarah looked to Kelly, who whispered a quick thank you.

"Good. So… now what?" Sarah asked. "School's almost out soon, right?"

"Ten minutes. No sense in even trying to go to class," Kelly said. "The speeches are probably just ending now anyways, so it might be early release. Should we just go home?"

"No. Calvin's going to look for me there first and… I might just kill him," Hayley said.

"Want to come back to my place?" Sarah offered. "If he comes by, you can hide in my room and I can send him away. I can tell him I haven't seen you and I'm busy working on the power Stars."

"Deal," Hayley said.

-Ninja-Steel-

After the speeches were done, Principals Hastings let the students leave a little early. Calvin already knew it was time to do damage control. However, he wasn't going to start with addressing rumours. He could care less what people thought of him. Right now, his only concern was making things right with Hayley.

He had let his mouth run a little too much. When he had done his speech, he went with what the crowd wanted instead of speaking about his own issues. He had mocked Victor because it earned him a few laughed, which made him feel comfortable, and when the question about how he could be better than Hayley came up, Calvin's mind went blank.

Hayley was everything to him. He loved her more than anything and he wanted nothing but the best for her. At times, he would just sit and ponder how he was so lucky to be with a girl like her. She was sweet, she was patient, she always found a way to cheer him up or make him laugh. She was the best thing to happen to him and the minute he was against her, he threw her under the bus.

They had only been dating a couple of months when Hayley approached him with the news one day. After one awkward night together, Hayley was pregnant. Calvin had no idea how it could have happened, but it did.

Hayley was in a panic. They were barely finished their sophomore year and still kids themselves. They couldn't happily raise one of their own. She confessed honestly to him that having a baby was not part of her plan and she didn't want to keep it.

Calvin remembered he protested at first. He didn't want to end the pregnancy and tried to get Hayley to consider adoption. Hayley refused. She didn't want her parents to find out and she didn't want to walk around the school pregnant. She didn't want people to know what happened and abortion was the way to make that happen.

" _Is it really that bad if they know?"_ Calvin remembered he asked her. _"I mean, so you're a bit bigger for a few months and people give you funny looks. We can handle that, right?"_

" _Calvin, I don't want to do this,"_ Hayley said with tears in her eyes. She went on to explain to Calvin how this might affect her. Her body would be flooded with hormones, there would be doctor's visits and medical expenses and the hours of labour that she would have to endure. There would be the recovery, the search for a family capable of raising a child. Coming out to her parents and Calvin's parents and dealing with their own opinions and the pressures they would put on her. Rumours would spread, there would be strange looks, isolation, laughter. People would criticize, there would be no more dating, not in high school at least.

There would be the strain on her relationship with Calvin, which was still fresh. There would be the constant worry that he would leave her alone with the baby, with her only reassurance being marriage. However, marriage at a young age was still more pressure, especially for a new couple with a child.

All she wanted was to get through high school. She wanted to graduate, to move onto college and find her way in her own time. She didn't want to have to balance being a student with being a mother.

" _If you were the one carrying a baby, you could do whatever you wanted,"_ Hayley had told him, _"But I'm the one taking the hit here, and it's not a hit I think I can survive."_

Calvin told Hayley he would think about it, but she informed him she had the appointment made already. She had told him as a courtesy – to give him a heads up before it was too late. She did want his input on the matter, just to be sure she had considered all angles, but that the choice was hers in the end.

She told Calvin when the appointment was and that she would swing by the school on her way, in case he wanted to come, but he could take the night to decide what he would do. If he didn't support her, he didn't have to show up. They could break up.

So, Calvin took the night. He researched everything he knew, hoping he could find something to make Hayley change her mind, but the more he learned, the more he relented to her point. This really wasn't a call he could make. By the time he had to get ready for school, he knew what needed to be done. He walked to the parking lot. Hayley pulled up in her parent's car and stopped in front of him. He sat in the passenger seat.

" _I don't like it,"_ he told her, _"But this is the best choice. I'm with you, every step of the way."_

" _For the record,"_ Hayley said. _"I don't like it either."_

He knew that. He could see it all over her face. She had clearly been upset and spent the morning crying over this. He just took her hand, squeezed it and offered her a smile. He waited with her. When it was over, he sat in the car with her. When she started to cry again, he held her. When she tried to second guess her decision, he refused to let her doubt herself.

" _You did the best thing you could do,"_ he told her. _"You know what you want, and you went for it. It wasn't the easy way out."_

" _Someone could have adopted him."_

" _Too many people have kids they don't want,"_ Calvin said. _"There's no guarantee we would have found a good home in time. And, if you think about it, this baby could have taken the spot of some kid already out there, waiting for a good home."_

" _I guess… Maybe that's true."_

" _There was no right choice here,"_ Calvin assured her. _"There were just options, all of which have their own struggles. You made the best call you could. No one can be angry with you for that. And if they do, they can tell it to me."_

" _So you don't hate me?"_

Calvin shook his head and smiled, " _Just what happened, but we're going to be more careful from now on. Next baby we have together, it'll be because we want it."_

" _The next baby?"_

" _Uh… I mean,"_ Calvin remembered being nervous. He and Hayley's relationship was still new and they were still young. Children shouldn't have even been a thought on his mind. _"Just… hypothetically. You know, the next time we have a baby, together or not, it'll be intentional."_

" _Sounds like a plan."_

" _Back to school?"_ Calvin asked and Hayley started the engine and drove off.

In the present, Calvin couldn't believe he had thrown that in her face. It was easily the hardest decision Hayley ever had to make, and though she had been ready to do it by herself, she had counted on his support. They had promised each other that this was a decision they agreed to together, and that it wasn't something that could be brought up out of anger. Even if they broke up, they promised to always respect that deal they made.

And Calvin had blown it. All due to nerves – all as word vomit. The whole school was aware of what happened now, and Hayley had been painted as the bad guy.

He tried to find her at home, but her parents told him she wasn't there. Calvin didn't know where to look next. She wasn't on a walk with Kody, since the dog had greeted him at the door. If she wasn't with Kody, she was usually with him. He didn't know where else she might hide.

But since Kelly wasn't home either, he decided he would try Sarah's house. At the very least, the girls might know something. They had left with Hayley, after all.

As he walked up the driveway, he saw Sarah working in her garage. She had been tasked with rebuilding the Power Stars, just like Kelly's. It was a slow process, since there was nothing Sarah could access that would give her the same powers as the original Stars. Even the green Power Star wasn't as powerful as the other Ranger suits, and Madam Oedius had made that one on her own. Calvin thought maybe Sarah didn't want to be distracted, but he needed to find Hayley.

"Hey," he called out and Sarah looked up.

"She's not here," the pink Ranger said.

"Do you know where she is?"

"Can't say."

"Come on, Sarah…"

"What you did was seriously shitty," Sarah frowned. "You know that, right?"

"Yes, I know."

"Nerves can't explain it away. I mean, I thought we would have to do some serious damage control after your jokes about Victor but… you really crossed a line."

"I know."

"So I can't tell you where she is. Not until she's ready to talk."

"Can you give her a message for me?"

"Maybe."

"Can you tell her I want to make things right? I mean, I don't know how, yet, but whatever I have to do, whatever she wants me to do…"

"Take it back," Sarah said. Calvin shook his head.

"I can't do that."

"No, but since it's out there already, how about telling the truth," Sarah said. "Look, Hayley didn't exactly tell us what happened, but she did rant about it, a lot. What you said doesn't match up with her version of the story and, forgive me for assuming, but I'd like to think hers is a lot more accurate."

"I'm sure it is. I have no idea what I was saying."

"So, tell the truth. Or don't, I don't care, but you made Hayley the bad guy in a decision you both made. This is your mistake. You take the heat for it."

"How?"

"There's final speeches right before the elections tomorrow," Sarah said. "You'll be addressing the whole school again. Do it then."

"Okay, but _how_?"

"I…"

"Sarah, Hayley isn't going to talk to me and… the guys aren't going to get it. Not in a night. You're my best shot."

"I've never been pregnant," Sarah shook her head.

"Yes but… two heads are better than one, right?"

"One head got you into this mess."

"Exactly. I'm the face of this campaign but… you're the brains. Please. Please, Sarah."

Calvin saw Sarah glance up, and took that as an indication that in spite of her claims, Hayley was with her in the house. However, he didn't push it.

"I'll tell her this isn't you taking my side. You're helping her and you are," Calvin said. "I'm making this right. I just know I'll need help for that. Please."

"Fine," Sarah said and set down her tools. "But if Madam Oedius shows up and I don't have a single Power Star ready, that's on you."

"Deal."


	12. Calvin's Speech

Calvin didn't get a chance to speak with Hayley before the final votes could be cast for class president, and with his speech coming up, there wouldn't be a chance to do it now. All he had to do was hope that this plan of his was going to work.

He had made a complete fool of everyone but himself the last time he had been on stage. He had put his real issue on the back burner in favour of being more comfortable. Now, no one was discussing partying responsibly and instead rumours about when Hayley had been pregnant and by who were spreading like wildfire and Calvin hoped this could put an end to it.

His name was called, reluctantly, by Principal Hastings. Hayley had already bowed out of the race, too humiliated by Calvin's speech the day before to continue. As much as she wanted to support him and his cause, it was his own mouth that caused this trouble, so there wasn't much guilt on her end for stepping down.

As Calvin made his way on the stage, Hayley stepped off. She was greeted by her friends. None of them were shocked by her decision.

Calvin walked up to the mic and looked to the crowd. Again, he was nervous. Again, he had to consult his cue-cards. However, this time, if he lost them, he knew to back out. It was better to say nothing at all then to throw someone else under the bus.

"We… um… we all make mistakes," he started. "Whether you're a student here, or a teacher. Whether you're grown or still young. Whether you have all the answers, or just think you do, we're all capable of making mistakes. And it happens. To all of us. There's not a single person here who has never made a mistake."

As Calvin expected, Victor threw his hand up in the air. Calvin gave a little nod of acknowledgement.

"Yes, Victor, even you. We all do it. And while sometimes they can make us feel stupid, or embarrassed, they always teach us something. We learn from our mistakes. When I built Nitro, my truck, I didn't get her right on the first try. There was smoke and grease and noises I don't think I've ever heard an engine make. But the more I messed up, the more I learned about trucks and though I'm still learning, Nitro runs now. She can make it from point A to point B, and that's all because of my mistakes.

"However, not all mistakes teach us lessons in a kind and gentle manner. Some mistakes are a bit harsh. They hurt you, they hurt the people you love, and while there's nothing wrong with completely messing up, you must take responsibility for what you did. You have to understand that mistakes caused by oversight, by a lack of preparation, or by running your mouth when you really should have just shut up can be absolutely devastating.

"A few weeks back, I was the victim of a mistake. We all know that at school dances, too many people get the idea to spike the punch. Teachers do everything they can to keep it from happening, but they can't keep their eyes on us and on the food all the time. Someone always gets past and the punch becomes toxic. Now, I can't tell you what to do with yourselves then. Drink it, don't drink it, that's really a personal decision, but if you do decide to have it, if you let yourself get so wasted, you aren't thinking straight, getting behind the wheel of a car is a mistake that can hurt. Someone made that mistake after homecoming and me and my friend got hurt. We dropped our girlfriends off at their house and I was on my way to drop her off. It was our first night to let go and relax, since it's been a pretty busy time for our group. She has a TBI. For those of you who've never suffered an injury in your life, that's a traumatic brain injury. Like when you sprain your wrist and it doesn't work right, the brain can be injured the same way.

"The people who decided to drink and drive made a careless mistake and put me and my friend in very real danger. We were lucky we weren't hurt, but we both could have suffered broken bones, bleeding, concussion, which could have killed my friend. Even worse, we _both_ could have died. The person who made that mistake would have ended our lives and the lives of all the people who love us, many of whom are in this very room – who sit next to you in class.

"I ran for class president because someone didn't own up to their mistake and I wanted someone to take responsibility. More than that, I wanted everyone to take responsibility. Just because it wasn't you at homecoming behind the wheel, or you in my truck, that doesn't mean this isn't your problem. We're teenagers. We screw up all the time, but we can't let those mistakes hurt the people we love.

"Here I stand, now, as a candidate for class president. Here I am preaching about taking responsibility for your mistakes and yesterday, I made the biggest mistake that I could. Victor, I said some harsh things about you in my speech and for that, I apologize. Just because I don't understand your strategy as former president, that doesn't mean I have the right to mock you. Personal attacks are uncalled for and I was wrong.

"Hayley," Calvin turned to face backstage, where he could see Hayley watching him from behind the curtain. He knew in that moment, how lucky he was, that she stayed to listen to him. He knew he didn't deserve her, "I know what I revealed yesterday. I know I said some things that we promised would stay between us. I threw that in your face and it was so, so wrong."

Calvin turned back to the crowd, "Hayley and I did have a baby together and we did terminate the pregnancy, and while she did make that call, I supported her completely and still do. We both hated the decision we had to make, but it needed to be done. I went with her to the clinic. I held her hand as they explained what would happen to her. I sat with her in the car when it was done. I stayed with her at school. We spent months talking about it, going back and forth, wondering if we made the right call. There were times when she was weak, and I had to pull her up, and there were times when I had my doubts and she reminded me of all the reasons I had her back in the first place.

"Hayley, you made the absolute hardest decision any woman could make. It wasn't easy, but you were strong and I'm thankful you let me be part of that experience. I don't regret the decision we made. I know… I know that I can't take back what I said, but I promise, Hayley, I'm going to do everything I can to make it up to you. If anyone questions or attacks you for what we did, they'll have to deal with me. You weren't alone in the decision and I'm going to make sure that, from here on out, you still won't be alone. I swear, I won't let anyone make you feel badly for doing what you knew needed to be done.

"Yesterday, I was asked what would make me a better candidate than Hayley, since we were running for the same issue. Yesterday, I made a mistake. Today, I'm here to fix that mistake. I'm not a better candidate than Hayley. Both of us could do the job. We may do it differently, but our results would be the same. However, after yesterday, I do think Hayley is the best candidate, because if this has shown me anything, it's that she'll always do the right thing, no matter how hard it is for her. No matter what she has to give up, she thinks through her decisions and she finds the best solution. She is the most wonderful, thoughtful and amazing person that I ever met and it's with my whole heart that I regret the pain I caused her. I should have had your back yesterday, and I'm standing in front of everyone, today, telling you that I do, and I always will.

"Hayley, I'm so sorry you backed out. I wish this could have ended differently but I respect your choice and I'm going to follow it. I don't want to win with a dirty campaign and, to be honest, being president isn't worth jeopardizing my relationship. I've said what I needed to say. Thank you."

With that, Calvin stepped down and walked off stage, where he came face to face with Hayley. He took her hands in his.

"Hayley, I meant it up there. Every word. I'm so, so sorry for what I said yesterday. If I could take it back, I would. I'd change everything. I love you so much."

"You really meant all that?"

"All of it. If I could find a way to make it clearer, I would but… I can't. I can't express how badly I feel, or how much I regret what happened or even how much I love you for how incredibly strong and sweet and smart and forgiving you are."

"Forgiving, huh?"

"A guy can hope," Calvin said with a sweet smile as he squeezed her hand. "So, what do you say? An apology dinner from your favourite bonehead tonight? Friends or no friends, whatever you want."

"Wherever I want?"

"Yes," Calvin nodded. "No matter the price. I'll sell Nitro for parts. I'll sell my blood. Please."

"Pick me up at seven. I'll be driving," Hayley said. Calvin smiled and turned to his friends who all gave him a thumbs up. He knew dinner would likely be spent with Hayley talking to him about what happened. He knew he would get an earful, but he knew he deserved it. They needed to talk. He had done her wrong and he needed to allow her the time to learn to trust him again.

Still, though dinner would be uncomfortable, and maybe even a little painful, he was grateful for it. Hayley was truly amazing. Somehow, even through his worst mistakes, she could always tell when he was genuinely remorseful. Somehow, he had managed to hang on to someone so perfect for so long.

He truly didn't deserve he, but he was glad that it seemed she didn't agree.

"Wait," Kelly said with a frown and turned to the stage as Principal Hastings announced that it would be time to vote. "If both Calvin and Hayley dropped out, that means…"

"Four years straight, Monty!" Victor called out as he ran off the stage to celebrate his certain victory. "Can you believe it! That's a new record!"

"Another accomplishment for the amazing Victor Vincent," Monty cheered. "Clearly, you are the best!"


End file.
